PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers have decisions to make at wide receiver. With Roman Wilson out with a finger injury and Michael Pittman Jr. on Injured Reserve with a foot injury, the team has lost two starters. Ben Skowronek (calf) is set to miss Week 6, and Pittsburgh needs to figure out how to add to their depth chart.
People are talking about outside options in Brian Thomas Jr. and Tyreek Hill. A reunion with JuJu Smith-Schuster has been floated around, and ESPN has even named five trade candidates the Steelers may be interested in.
But Aaron Rodgers has revealed their realistic plan, at least for Week 6. Speaking with media about the team's upcoming game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Rodgers was asked about the outlook at wideout, and gave love to the three players who may be filling in.
"It seems like at this point it's just in-house options," Rodgers said. "So, we’vegot a talented [practice] squad group of guys and guys who played football at the highest level and madeplays.Excited about getting those guys in. Obviously, [Tonyan] has played a lot of football and played at a high level, so I'm sure he'll get some more opportunities. [Brandon]Smith, Brandon Johnson, maybe Isaiah [Hodgins]. We'll get some guys who haven't seen a lot of time out there and expect them to play well."
Steelers "New" Wide Receivers
Brandon Smith was impressive all summer. He caught the first pass during team drills during training camp, and immediately became the camp darling for the black and gold.
If not for an injury, he had a real chance of making the 53-man roster, and keeping him on the practice squad felt natural. He continued to make plays throughout training camp, and was expected to be the team's first call-up when needing wide receiver help this season.
At 27 years old, he's yet to record an in-game stat at the NFL level, but he'll need to with the Steelers over the next few weeks as he operates as WR3.
Brandon Johnson and Isaiah Hodgins have NFL experience. Johnson has 26 catches for 335 yards and five touchdowns throughout his career. He has one catch for nine yards with the Steelers in 2024.
Hodgins has 70 receptions for 749 yards and eight touchdowns. He's started 19 games during his NFL career, including five last year for the New York Giants.
Expect plenty of 12-personnel for Pittsburgh this weekend, trying to utilize Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington and Robert Tonyan more to make up for the loss of Wilson, Pittman Jr. and Skowronek.
But when it comes to who's going to play wide receiver for the Steelers these next few weeks, Rodgers has already told us.
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